Barbour County, West Virginia

The first white settlement in present-day Barbour County was established in 1780 by Richard Talbott – along with his brother Cotteral and sister Charity – about three miles (4.8 km) downriver from the future site of Philippi.[4] At this time the region was still a part of Monongalia County, Virginia. The region had had no permanent Indian settlements and so conflicts with Native Americans were relatively infrequent in the early days. Nevertheless, the Talbotts were obliged to leave their homestead several times for safety and twice found it necessary to retreat back east of the Alleghenies, returning each time. No member of this eventually large family was ever killed by Indian attacks.[5]

Over time, parts of the future Barbour County were included in the newly created Harrison (1784), Randolph (1787), and Lewis (1816) Counties. Barbour County itself was created in 1843 and named for the late Virginia politician and jurist Philip P. Barbour (1783–1841). (Barbour had served as a U.S. Congressman from Virginia, Speaker of the House, and Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court.) The settlement of Philippi – formerly "Anglin's Ford" and "Booth's Ferry" – was platted, named, and made the county seat in the same year; it was chartered in 1844. By the 1850s, when a major covered bridge was constructed at Philippi to service travellers on the Beverly-Fairmont Turnpike, the county's population was approaching 10,000 people.

The first newspaper in the county was the Barbour Jeffersonian, published starting in August 1857 and running only to about June 1861. It was put out by Thompson Surghnor (1820-1864).[6]

In April 1861, an Ordinance of Secession from the United States of America was approved throughout the state of Virginia in a referendum. Delegates from 25 western counties, however, assembled at Wheeling on 13 May for the first of a two meetings (see Wheeling Convention) called to repeal the Ordinance. The delegates from Barbour County for the first convention were Spencer Dayton, John H. Shuttleworth, and E.H. Manafee. Barbour County had voted in favor of Virginia's secession, though, and a palmetto secession flag had been flying above the courthouse since January, 1861.[7]

On 3 June 1861, Philippi was the scene of one of the first battles of the American Civil War. The battle was later lampooned as the "Philippi Races" because of the hurried retreat by the Confederate troops encamped in the town. (The skirmish is reenacted every June during the town's "Blue and Gray Reunion".) At daylight on June 3, two columns of Union forces under the command of Col. Benjamin Franklin Kelley and Col. Ebenezer Dumont, with perhaps 3,000 men, arrived from Grafton and attacked about 800 poorly armed Confederate recruits under the command of Col. George A. Porterfield. The Union troops had marched all night through a heavy rain storm to arrive just before daylight. The surprise attack awakened the sleeping Confederates. After firing a few shots at the advancing Union troops, the Southerners broke lines and began running frantically to the south, some still in their bed clothes.

The Union victory in a relatively bloodless battle propelled the young Major General George B. McClellan into the national spotlight, and he would soon be given command of all Union armies. The battle also inspired more vocal protests in the Western part of Virginia against secession. On 11 June, the second Wheeling Convention met in that city and Barbour County was again represented by Dayton and Shuttleworth, who were this time joined by N.H. Taft. The Convention nullified the Virginia Ordinance of Secession and named Francis H. Pierpont governor. These events would eventually result in the separate statehood of West Virginia.

The economy and infrastructure in Barbour grew steadily, but slowly, through the late 19th century. Although the first railroad had reached nearby Grafton in 1852, a narrow-gauge railroad was not laid through the county until the early 1880s; a standard gauge line followed in the 1890s.

In 1990, private developers offered Barbour County citizens $4M to $6M annually in host fees to accept out-of-state garbage into a County landfill over the following three decades. Up to 200,000 tons of garbage per month would be delivered.[8] (At the time, the county's annual budget was only about $1M.) County voters rejected the offer.[9]

As of the 2020 census, there were 15,465 people and 5,813 households residing in the county. There were 7,114 housing units in Barbour. The racial makeup of the county was 93.5% White, 1.8% African American, 0.2% Asian, 0.2% Native American, 0.3% from other races, and 4% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 1.2% of the population.

Of the 5,813 households, 47.5% were married couples living together, 25.5% had a female householder with no spouse present, 18.4% had a male householder with no spouse present. The average household and family size was 3.22. The median age in the county was 42.7 years with 20.5% of the population under 18. The median income for a household was $42,260 and the poverty rate was 20.8%.[16]

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 16,589 people, 6,548 households, and 4,643 families residing in the county.[17] The population density was 48.6 inhabitants per square mile (18.8/km²). There were 7,849 housing units at an average density of 23.0 per square mile (8.9/km²).[18] The racial makeup of the county was 96.8% white, 0.7% black or African American, 0.6% American Indian, 0.2% Asian, 0.2% from other races, and 1.5% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 0.6% of the population.[17] In terms of ancestry, 23.4% were German, 22.3% were American, 13.6% were Irish, and 11.0% were English.[19]

Of the 6,548 households, 30.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.8% were married couples living together, 10.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 29.1% were non-families, and 24.2% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 2.89. The median age was 41.5 years.[17]

The median income for a household in the county was $31,212 and the median income for a family was $39,434. Males had a median income of $34,573 versus $21,797 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,304. About 14.3% of families and 18.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.5% of those under age 18 and 13.6% of those age 65 or over.[20]

As of the census of 2000, there were 15,557 people, 6,123 households, and 4,365 families residing in the county. The population density was 46 people per square mile (18 people/km²). There were 7,348 housing units at an average density of 22 per square mile (8.5/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 97.36% White, 0.49% Black or African American, 0.71% Native American, 0.26% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.12% from other races, and 1.03% from two or more races. 0.47% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. In addition, the area has a significant population of racially mixed (though often light-skinned and blue-eyed) people, known locally as 'the Chestnut Ridge people', whose specific origins are uncertain. They are categorized by many scholars among the Melungeons found scattered throughout Appalachia.

There were 6,123 households, out of which 30.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.20% were married couples living together, 10.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.70% were non-families. 25.10% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 2.94.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.00% under the age of 18, 9.40% from 18 to 24, 26.80% from 25 to 44, 25.20% from 45 to 64, and 15.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 96.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.00 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $24,729, and the median income for a family was $29,722. Males had a median income of $24,861 versus $17,433 for females. The per capita income for the county was $12,440. 22.60% of the population and 18.40% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 32.00% of those under the age of 18 and 16.70% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.

• Philippi (county seat)

• Belington
• Junior

• Century
• Galloway

In 1863, West Virginia's counties were divided into civil townships, with the intention of encouraging local government. This proved impractical in the heavily rural state, and in 1872 the townships were converted into magisterial districts.[22] Barbour County's original magisterial districts were Barker, Cove, Elk, Glade, Philippi, Pleasant, and Union. Between 1880 and 1890, part of Barker District was split off to form Valley District. These eight districts continued until the 1970s, when they were consolidated into three districts: North, South, and West.[23]

The names and boundaries of Barbour county's historic magisterial districts were preserved as assessment and tax districts, alongside the corporations of Belington, Junior, and Philippi. The City of Philippi is divided into four wards, all of which are in Philippi District. The first and second wards of Belington are in Valley District, while the second and third ward are in Barker District.

• Barbour County West Virginia...Another Look (1979), Compiled by The Barbour County Historical Society, Taylor Publishing Company, Dallas, TX and Paoli, PA.
• Coonts, Violet Gadd (2nd ed, May 1991), The Western Waters: Early Settlers of Eastern Barbour County, West Virginia, Assisted by Gilbert Gray Coonts and Harold Cart Gadd, Published by Stephen P. Coonts, Denver, CO.
• Coffman, Mary Stemple and Ethel Park Stemple (1978), Footsteps of Our Fathers: Early Settlers of Tacy (Barbour County) W. Va.; Baltimore.
• Hardesty's Historical and Geographical Encyclopedia, Illustrated: Containing large scale copper plate Maps of Each State and Territory of the United States, and the Provinces of Canada ... Special History of the Virginias, Maps and Histories of Lewis, Upshur and Barbour Counties, West Virginia ... Volume 4 of the series published by H.H. Hardesty, 1883, 391 pages. (Reprint edition edited by Jim Comstock; Subsequent reprint by Wes Cochran. Contains a brief history of Barbour County and biographical sketches of its citizens.)
• Mattaliano, Jane K. and Lois G. Omonde (1994), Milestones: A Pictorial History of Philippi, West Virginia, 1844–1994, Virginia Beach, Virginia: The Donning Company Publishers.
• Myers, Karl or Elmer (ca. 1935), One-Room Schoolhouses, 1 min. home movie of one-room Barbour County schoolhouses; West Virginia State Archives (Available on DVD set Treasures from American Film Archives: 50 Preserved Films, 2000).
• Shaffer, John W. (2003), Clash of Loyalties: A Border County in the Civil War, Morgantown, West Virginia: West Virginia University Press.
• Shingleton, George A. (1976), History of Mt. Morris School, Church and Cove District, Parsons, West Virginia: McClain Printing Company.
• Smith, Barbara and Carl Briggs (2000), Barbour County (Series: Images of America), Arcadia Publishing, Charleston, SC.
• Zinn, W.D. (1931), The Story of Woodbine Farm, Buckhannon, West Virginia: Kent Reger, Job Printer. (A detailed account of life and work on a Barbour County [Shooks Run] farm in the late-19th/early-20th centuries.)